Have you sent your luggage ahead,

asked the taxi driver taking me from the Southampton train station to the Cruise Terminal. No,this is it. But you are going for a week,he replied puzzled. Yes,I know. But the suitcase cannot weigh more than 8,9 kilos,he continued incredulously. And I probably won't even wear everything,I said laughing. And I did not.A short black dress with a massive bouquet of wild flowers,embroidered to perfection at the front of the dress bought on my very first visit to Lisbon, was not used, as I did not go to a formal dinner one evening,neither did I wear two blouses.I always feel aggrieved when I get off a ship knowing some items were not worn,feeling I had packed too much and wowing never to do it again,but if course I do, every trip. What can I say about the cruise? In spite of Ventura's shortcomings I had a wonderful time and wished could have stayed another week at least.I had met the couple who had remembered me from a Royal Caribbean cruise, several times.They danced every evening in the atrium [and they were lovely movers],giving me a wave and a smile as I was sitting in the corner of the coffee shop adjacent to the atrium.It was truly the nicest way to spend an evening - sitting with my HP Pavilion,browse and write.Oh,yes,I have my little Toshiba chromebook back, am using it now.The repair shop had erased everything, everything.but somehow am managing to get it all back.It is kind of coming back by itself, getting used to me.And as long as I can access my blog,I am happy. One morning in the self-service restaurant a waiter approached me,hello,he said, do you remember me?I looked up quizzingly. You were on Oceana at Christmas three years ago. Yes,of course, and is Buboo here,too,I asked. Buboo was the second waiter who served me every dinner, I had the most excellent table,but this is so wonderful about Oceana,they go out of their way to make a single traveller happy.Baboo is on Azura,the waiter said[I remembered him as Buboo].Yes, they were the nicest of the nicest waiters and every time I said a liked something - be it a cake or a crackling, they brought me another portion.Aaaah,my waist.It was truly the most wonderful Christmas.I had bought both of them Ives St Laurent after shave lotions. Baboo said it was the first time he was given a present on ship. This year it is going to be spent on the Queen Victoria. My sister does not know yet. Her son,my nephew will be moving to his newly built house in December and the whole family will gather there on Christmas day.Since my husband's death seven years ago I have not had Christmas with my family, I want to be totally independent, make my own life, build my own future.My family cannot understand it,but this is the way I want it to be.But I try to welcome the New Year with them,succeeding sporadically. Yes, I had a lovely time on Ventura and cannot wait to go back.The ship is going to be refurbished next spring,

Yesterday was a sea day,

this means we sail all day and the evenings are usually formal.Most of the travellers don on their best.There are some,uninitiated to the cruising world, who did not realize when packing,what the life on a cruise ship is all about.In the evenings you put on your finery.No-one does it better than Cunard patrons and I know it better than most,have a platinum Cunard grade,not the highest,but almost.Have seen it all,the smart and not so smart,the plain and plain awful, beach sandals worn with evening robes, women not carrying a handbag, dresses too short,too long, too see-through,too much make-up.From sublime to the ridiculous.People have their photos taken, portraits made.There is not a photographer who would take a picture of me I would like.My sister knows.She took 700 on one cruise and I erased them all.At the end of the cruise her friend asked - are you there alone? I thought you were going with your sister! Maria sighed a sigh of despair. But clever as she is,she installed on facebook old photos of me,some taken years earlier.People were none the wiser. So yesterday was a formal evening.The kitchen staff were working overtime.The renown chef Marco Pierre White on board,giving food demonstrations,signing his cookery book, the menu was partly created by him.And I did not go.It was the first time ever I had missed a formal evening's dinner.Ever.The bed was so warm,comfortable,I thought later,later,but later never came.And that is the way it should be on a cruise.You please yourself.There is nothing you HAVE to do.Otherwise it would be no fun at all.The entertainment on the cruise provided was varied and catered for every age.There were beatbox classes-how to create the sounds of drums.You could exercise to the beat of zumba or learn how to dance salsa,or cha-cha,or practically every other dance.There was a talk how to look 10 years younger.Dream in a pipe.There are films every day and various quizzes and sport activities.Life on board is varied.It is what you make it and it can be wonderful. I had a phone-call thanking me for my honesty in the questionnaire the guests were asked to complete.We give various grades to the services rended and are encouraged to add suggestions. I never need any encouragement.The worst TV system at sea.The internet follows closely.Stained carpet throughout.Threadbare towels. I was given excellent news - Ventura is going to be refurbished next spring.Not a day too soon. There is another dance class taking place as I write.Soon I will be going to have lunch.I need to be amongst the earliest diners if I want a small table to myself.

Guernsey

This is my third visit to the island.Third time unlucky.[Or is it fourth? How the time flies]]The sea too choppy,the tenders cannot be used, we are staying on board and I do not mind at all, even though have been looking forward to getting some Hotel Chocolat sultanas soaked in brandy, dipped in chocolate.Teetotal most of the time. I do have the odd cocktail or a glass of red wine or some liquer chocolates.And these particular ones are in a class of their own.There used to be a Hotel Chocolat branch in Kensington High Street in London,but closed 2 years ago now.I came across another branch when running to my Citi bank appointment in the City of London,once,but had no time to stop.And then there was The Hotel Chocolat smiling at me on this lovely little island.Alas, it does not look like we are getting off the ship today. Am sitting in the atrium of Ventura, the entertainment department has lined up some amusements for the disgruntled travellers.Why should any-one moan when things happen that are simply beyond the ship's powers,I will never understand.There is a film in the theatre,Moana,if I remember correctly the name,then there will be a lecture on Yorkshire ripper.Well, what do you want at such short notice?!And as I write there are dancers twirling and spinning on the dance floor, the line dance class provided by a true professional.And here I am sitting with quite palatable small americano,a biscuit,my HP Pavillion and the world is a wonderful place.I wish I did not have to go back home tomorrow.One day,one day I will be travelling to my heart's content.One day soon. I am re-reading on 19 August all my posts Re the cruise on Ventura,to ensure the information I give is double-checked and correct.We did get off the ship eventually,the tenders were deployed from about 12.45.I never did go ashore,though.

A blog about compost

Have not yet mastered the way to access this part of the blog,HP Pavillion has a mind of its own and it responds either very,very fast,or very,very slowly.The blog page I usually get does not have the COMPOSE on it and this time I typed to search BLOG COMPOSE.Microsoft ever so helpful responded immediately with A BLOG ABOUT COMPOST.Thank you,Microsoft.You are wonderful,but too clever for me by half.

The name "PORTUGAL" is derived from OPORTO's Roman name PORTUS CALE.

And this beautiful, cultured country could not have a more fitting city to showcase its name.I had lost my heart to Oporto,the city of bridges,the very first time a shuttle bus ferried myself,my best friend and fellow travellers from the Independence Of The Seas to the city centre.Not far from the drop off point there was an eaterie the likes of which I had not seen before.All cooked food went straight from the oven onto the one long wide table and there you picked and chose what you wanted.And we wanted to taste everything,each mouthful better than the last.The coffee was poured the American way - the cup re-filled time and time again.The restaurant owner made us promise we would come back the next time we were in the city and back I would go in a flash, if only I could find the darn place!Since then I have been to Oporto twice, with Cunard and now P % O, but neither company uses the same drop off point as The Royal Caribbean.One day...Oporto has coffee shops aplenty.But finding a really good one is a question of luck. And this time I was not lucky.The schnitzel sandwich was warmed up but it stil was not enjoyable to eat and I left most of it,the orange juice was freshly pressed,but before I said Jack Robinson,the server used the old bar-tender's trick- piled ice half way up the glass and topped up with a bit of juice. Coffee Amricano was so so.But the weather was lovely,at 23 perfect for walking and this I did.I found my way to some quality boutiques I had patronized on my previous visit to the city and walked out from Intropia and Max & Co with three linen and silk dresses and very stylish sunglasses to replace a pair by Balenciaga I had broken and cannot find anyone to repair.I have fondness for Balenciaga, their perfume was one of the first designer perfumes I had bought myself,they are classy and smell like a meadow. It is worth knowing that Oporto's Historic Centre - RIBEIRA - was declared a UNESCO WORLD HERITAGE SITE in 1996.I have seen Oporto from a tour bus, took a train ride on one of those lovely little colourful trains, walked through the streets. What I have not done is climbed the 220 steps in a spiral staircase at the Torre dos Clerigos, and I don't think I ever will, 220! I have not visited a port wine lodge either.

Vigo

What can I say about Vigo that I have not said before?It has not grown on me in spite of giving it several chances over the past six years.Given that I have had there one of the two worst haircuts I've ever had in my entire life,the other one in Lisbon,they both beat the bird's nest my friend Emily gave me when we were children,this has certainly not endeared the city to me.I have taken tours,have walked the width and the bredth of the city.But have never bought a cake in Vigo. Big mistake. Because today a miracle happened.In fact 3 little miracles! A chicken sandwich,divine,an apple cake,super,and then there was something I am yet to find a name for - a cross between a cake and a biscuit,utterly stupendously deliciously scrumptious.It had a flaky pastry base, which was spread with a thick jam-like substance, I detected ginger and figs,and covered with various nuts.Freshly cooked, still slightly warm.And I found it almost next to the ship - inside the port shopping centre just by the elevator going up to the 1st floor.The name of this lovely little place is EL MOLINO.It will be my first stop the next time we dock in Vigo. Quite unmissable.

I had spent on Ventura the Easter of 2016

I wrote about it then -"The ship is the ugliest ship I have ever been on.Gormless. Charmless.In need of updating and complete refurbishment.To date nothing has changed.

4 August 2017,Ventura,Spain,Portugal,Guernsey

When I opened the door to cabin R751,my heart jumped with joy.Never have I had a cabin in a position quite like this-at the back of the 14th floor,the balcony hidden in the corner, kind of askew,the whole starboard side of the ship spread out in front of me.Even an overhang and the lack of sunshine did not spoil the magnificent view and the joy of knowing this was mine,all mine for the next seven days made me want to sing and dance.I knew when booking the cruise I was allocated freedom dining which meant small table to myself every evening and now the perfect location of the cabin was the proverbial cherry on the best apple strudel.So came 6 o'clock I was standing in line to dine in the Cinnamon restaurant.A couple looked at me both saying something,thinking they said hello I smiled and nodded,but then the lady said-we have seen you on a Royal Caribbean ship.I had no idea who they were and had no wish to know.They were both pounding me with questions.My heart sank.Shall I jump overboard?As we had a safety drill only several hours earlier I knew there would be too many floating objects thrown after me to save me,so I just had to grin and nod and look overjoyed! The door to the dining room opened and aI sighed a sigh of relief.

I have a new HP Pavillion notebook

and I do not like it.My lovely nephew thinks HP is the best of the best,he has it, all his friends have bought the brand because he is able to help them with every bit they cannot cope with.So when my lovely Toshiba chromebook suddenly died on me, no warning,I bought myself HP Pavillion.And I do not like it.It is too responsive and yet not responsive enough.And unless I come to love it soon, it will go where my Acer has gone and 2 phones - to someone who would be happy and willing to take it off my hands!My chromebook has been repaired,had a call last Monday telling me so and was also asked if I would like to have the legs put back on  [they have fallen off one by one and even though I had glued them on they never stayed],at about £80 for a bit of plastic,thanks but no thanks, only if they were made from gold.

On 21 July I made the hospital appointment with good half an hour to spare.

I did not have to wait long,the lovely surgeon called me in almost as I sat down.The nurse asked my name and date of birth before the local anaesthetic was administered,she asked again half way through the procedure and this time she asked if I knew where I was and at the end I got the same three questions again.The third time I could not resist saying - I am the Queen of England and we are in Buckingham Palace. The surgeon laughed until she almost accidentally administered another dose of anaesthetic. Ludka, had you said this at the beginning I would not have been able to do the job and would have had to call in a colleague to do the biopsy. You are very laid back. Laid back. Waiting for the first hospital appointment, then for the biopsy appointment has not been a picnic.I keep my hands and my mind occupied but of course it is always there somewhere this ugly word cancer.It will be three weeks from the 21st before I know the result.  I prefer to be alone,getting through days on my own terms.Have considered spending a week or so somewhere in the countryside and this is what I would have done had it not been for P&O offering 7 nights on Ventura in Vigo, Oporto and Lisbon. Now those of you who read my blog know that I have been on Ventura once and once really would have been enough had my life not taken this unexpected turn ,but Ventura is sailing to Oporto I adore and Lisbon I love without reservations,and even though the first port of call is Vigo, and having been there many times, this gormless city has not grown on me,I need to get away and I needed to book this cruise. And I know what to expect on the ship,my expectations are not high.I know where we are sailing and cannot wait.And 4th August is a perfect date,on my return there should be a letter from the hospital waiting for me.